Spill burner unit for continuous combustion turbine engines



Aug. 24, 1954 A. W. PE SPILL BURNER UNIT F ARCE Filed June 25, 1952 k QMFEffi.

28 42 25 35 g 39 Q ;-7 -29 3/ 6 R /--4 7 34 32 k In vnfor Alfred WPearce Attorneys Patented Aug. 24, 1954 SPILL'BURNER UNIT FOR CONTINUOUSCOMBUSTION TURBINE ENGINES Alfred w. Peace, Yat

e, near Bristol, England,

assignor to Dowty Equipment Limited, Arle' Court, Cheltenham, EnglandApplication June 25, 1952, Serial No. 295,428

Claims priority, application Great Britain June 29, 1951 6 Claims.

This invention relates to fuel atomizers for continuous combustionturbines. Each atomizer is arranged on the end of a fuel supply conduitwhich generally projects through the wall of a combustion chamber tomount the atomizer midway through the chamber. If the atomizer isdirected downstream of the airflow through the chamber, the relativelycool air flows overthe supply conduit in advance of the combustion zone.An alternative arrangement which finds favour is to direct the atomizingspray upstream of the airflow through the chamber, and in this case thesupply conduit will be situated more in the combustion zone whereby thefuel in the supply conduit is pre-heated resulting in improvedefiiciency of combustion.

Again, a preferred type of atomizer for continuous combustion turbinesis that known as a spill type atomizer in which the fuel is directedthrough tangential passages into a swirl chamber wherein the flow isdivided, a proportion of the fuel being discharged thence through adischarge orifice and the remainder passing through a spill orifice intoa return conduit.

One object of the present invention is to provide a unitary fuelatomizer device of the spill type suitable for installation in acombustion chamber for directing atomized spray upstream of the airflowthrough the chamber.

Another object is to provide an atomizer unit in accordance with theforegoing object wherein the return conduit is protected from hightemperatures prevailing in the combustion chamber by surrounding it withthe supply conduit and the fuel therein en route to the swirl chamber.

A further object is to provide an atomizer unit having a protectedreturn conduit wherein thermal stresses acting between the supply andreturn conduits are eliminated.

The preferred form of spill burner unit constructed in accordance withthe invention will now be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawing.

As shown, the unit comprises an atomizing burner head assembly indicatedgenerally at H, a supply conduit 1 2 leading to said head assembly froman inlet or supply connection I3, and a return conduit l4 leading fromsaid head assembly to an outlet or spill connection I 5. The conduits l2and I 4 are disposed concentrically about an axis which is transverse to(in the illustrated form at right angles to) the axis of the burner headassembly II. The conduit 12 is formed with a tubular housing [6 for theburner head assembly,

ting limited universal movement as well as sliding movement of theconduit M with respect to the conduit l 2. The unit has a flange 2|remote from the burner head assembly and by means of which the unit maybe secured to the a combustion chamber 12 and 14 extend.

boundary wall of into which the conduits The. burner head assemblycomprises three 7 parts 22, 23 and 24 displaceable axially with respectto the housing IS. The part 22 has a flange 25 for engagement with anannular abutment surface 26 at one end of the housing [6. It also has asleeve portion 2'! the end of which bears directly against one side ofthe banjo fitting ll.

The part 23 fits through the openings of the banjo.

fitting I1 and into the sleeve 2'! of the part 22, and has a flange 28the inner surface of which directly engages the other side of the banjofitting i'l. The part 24 has a flange 29 engaging the flange 28 of thepart 23 and has a shaped stem portion 30 which extends thence bysuccessively stepped reductions, within the part 23. The space 3! leftbetween the part 22 and the adjacent ends of the parts 23 and 24constitutes the swirl chamberof the burner head assembly, said swirlchamher having a discharge orifice 32 and tangential entry passages, ofwhich one is indicated at 33, leading from the supply conduit l2. Thepart 23 has a completely uninterrupted annular spill orifice 34 and aspill chamber 44 into which extends in spaced relationship the end ofthe stem portion 30 of the part 24. It also has a number of ports 35leading from the spill chamber 44 into the return conduit I4. The part24 isclamped against the part 23, and the parts 22 and 23 are clampedagainst the banjo fitting I1, and all the parts are clamped as a wholeagainst the annular abutmentsurface 26 by a screw member 36 screwed intothe housing !6 at the opposite end thereof to the abutment surface 26.

From a consideration of the drawing it will be seen that all therelatively movable parts, i. e, the parts 22, ll, 23, 24 and 36 areeachlimited in their movement towards the annular abutment the parts of anyset when the latter is assembled.

The need for employing compressible sealing washers is thereforeentirely eliminated at that part of the unit which will bedisposedwithin'th'e combustion chamber and subjected-tothe'hightemperatures of combustionazThe screw member 36 has a channel 31 intowhich is received a tongue 38 of a metal washer 39. The housing It has anotch 49 into which a part*of"th'e *washer' 39 is displaced to lock themember--36 against The rotation with respect to the housing 16. housingI6 is finally closed by a screw cap 4! screwed on to the member 36against the-washer 39. The cap 4| has a notch 42 into which part ofthet-washera39i is: displaced to lockthe cap against :rotation';relatively tozxthe member 36. The :member ..36;has;one 101 more portsiii-which communicatewith: the interior of the supply conduit sir-andwhich serve to prevent the entrapment .ofr'li'quidabetweerr the memberStrand the caplilz:

Inl-the preferred embodiment above described, the-:innerrconduit 4ismade capable of limited universal movementnwithurespect to the outerconduit, [2 since .i it i readily.- "permits the banjofitting: ends-of"the inner conduit to move during clampingofithe several burner. headparts. The slidable' sealing relationship between the inner conduit .14andythe end afitting ilfl serves to eliminate any thermaltstressesacting between the supply and return conduits l2 and I4. For example,the: relative "displacement between these conduits 'at:the"sea1;20, asthe conduit l2 heats up from coldftonorma-l running,may be of the orderof 02inch, an amount which would be inadmissible if'the -conduits l 2and I 4 were rigidly "secured together :at both ends.

I claim:

1. .A'spill burner unit comprising a rigid tubular supply conduit:terminating at one end in a generally" tubular atomizer housing, theaxis whereof :is directed transversely of the axis of the conduit, saidhousing being open at each end; a rigid retu-rmconduit separate from anddisposed substantially coaxially within and spaced throughout its lengthfromsaid supply conduit, to define anannular supply passage, andterminating within the atomizer housing as a banjo fitting coaxial withsaid'housing; an assemblage of'incompressible rigid parts coaxiallyarranged within said'housing and in part within said banjo fitting andcooperatingto space the banjo fitting-from one end of the housing, andtwo of such-- parts cooperating to: clamp the opposite sides ofthe-banjojfitting and thus to hold it fixedw ly'relative to such end; ;aclosurevmeans'for the cppositeendot-theihousing pressing againsttheassemblage'tometain.it and the interposed banjo fitting in assembled,liquid-tight clamped relationship; within and relative to the housing;the several parts .of-asaid assemblage defining, within the .assemblageand:intermediate certain of the individualparta-t a :SWill'chamberported for communication with the supply passage, and a to define:an atom-izing"orifice-located in. the axis of the housing-andtodefinean axially disposed spill orifice at the opposite end of the swirlchamberyandr-a :spil-l chamber to which the spill orifice leads andwhich is ported for communication with the return conduit, and resilientsealing means interposed between the spaced end portions of the supplyandreturn conduits which arelocated remotely from the :hous'mg and banjofitting, respectively, whereby the return conduit is free to moverelative to the supply conduit, as during clamping of the banjo fitting.

2..A,spi'll burner unit as in claim 1, wherein the resilient sealingmeans comprises a packing ring mounted captivelyzin one of the conduitsand slidably engaging the other conduit.

3. A spill: burner unit comprising a rigid tubular supply conduit havingmeans adjacent one end for supporting it, whereby its opposite end will:projectinteriorly of a combustion chamber, and terminating at suchinterior end in a generally tubular atomizer housing, the axis whereofis directed transversely of .the axis of the conduit, said housing beingopen-at each end; a rigid return conduit separate from and" disposedvsubstantially coaxially Withimandspaced throughout its "length from,said supply conduit, to definebetween the two conduits an annular supplypassage, and terminating within the atomizer hous ing as a banjo fittingcoaxial with said housing;

an assemblage comprising a plurality of incompressible,

banjo fitting'and in part intermediate the respective'ends of thehousing and thebanjo fitting, one

of the parts of said assemblage seating against 4 one end of the housingand against the facing end of saidbanjofitting'asa spacer element tomaintain them separated, and a second part ofthe assemblage seatingagainst the opposite 'end of the banjo fitting and cooperatingwith'therelatively slidablefirst'part to clamp the banjo fittingbetweenthem; a closure means 'tor' tha't' end of the housing which isopposite the spacer fitting in assembled, liquid-tightclamped-relationship within and relative to-the housing; the

several *parts of the assemblage defining, within the assemblage andintermediate certain of the individual parts; a swirl chamber ported forcom munication with the supply passage, an atomizing orifice leadingthence and located in the spacer element at the housings axis, a spillorifice at the opposite end-of the swirl chamber, anda spill chamber towhich the spill'orifice leads" and which is ported for communicationwith the return conduit; and resilient sealing means .intei posedbetween the spaced end portions of' the" supply and: return conduitswhich are'located remotely from the housing and banjo'fitti-ng,respectively, whereby during clamping of the banjo fittingorothermovement ofone conduitrelative to the other, to leave such conduitsfree I to move relatively.

4. A spill burner unit asinclaim 3, wherein the housingis threaded andthe closure means is. complementally threaded, about the housings axis,to press the secondpart of .the assemblage towards the banjo fitting,the latter in turn against the spacer element, and the latter againstits seat at the opposite endv of the housing.

5. A spill burner asiniclaim. 4, whereinthen closure means is formed oftwo parts, one where-. of isthreadedly joined to the housing, theothers.beingthreadedly joined .to the firstpart, and.

rigid parts =coax'i'ally arranged within 1 and slidable "axiallyrelative to one another'fandtosaid-housing, and located in part withinsaid means common to the two parts and. interengaged with each thereofand with the housing to lock the closure member parts against accidentalrotation.

6. A spill burner as in claim 3, wherein the 5 assemblage includes athird part slidably received within the second part, both said partsbeing flanged at the closure end of the housing to clamp the secondparts flange between the third parts flange and the housing, when thethird part is 10 pressed by the closure means.

References Cited in the file of this patent Number UNITED STATES PATENTS

